LK-99 is a gray-black color, potential and unconfirmed room-temperature superconductor material at normal pressure. In layman's terms, it can achieve nearly zero resistance under ordinary pressure at room temperature, known as a room-temperature superconductor.
Superconductivity refers to the phenomenon where some very special substances suddenly become zero resistance under extremely extreme conditions, and this "extremely extreme condition" refers to:
1、Temperature: Extremely low temperatures, generally just a few tens of degrees higher than absolute zero (−273.15℃) — around minus two hundred degrees Celsius.
2、Pressure: If you want the temperature to be higher, very high pressure is needed.
Previously, the highest temperature a superconductor could reach in a laboratory was about -70℃ made by the German Max Planck Institute in 2015, and the required pressure was 1.5 million atmospheres. This temperature is still lower than the temperature of daily applications, and this pressure is absolutely impossible to provide in a general environment.
Now, this material named "LK-99" in South Korea. It claims to only require our daily pressure, that is, one atmosphere. Its critical temperature is positive 105°C, meaning as long as it's below this temperature, it has certain superconducting properties, and at room temperature 30°C, its resistance becomes almost zero, becoming a very close superconductor.
What does its realization mean? Theoretically speaking, it's like installing an accelerator for the development of the entire human society. You see, almost all facilities are related to electricity now. With circuits, there is resistance, and energy has losses. If all are changed to room-temperature superconductors, energy utilization will increase a lot. That's just the first step of impact. It will also trigger a series of chain reactions. For example, all high-voltage lines will disappear. Why do we need high-voltage transmission? Because of energy loss, so high voltage is needed to boost it. If everything is superconducting, high-voltage lines are no longer necessary.
The impact of room-temperature superconductors is not just about saving energy. It also has a key feature, that is, its magnetic field is particularly stable. Because of zero resistance, no heat is generated, and a particularly stable magnetic field can be formed. This technology can be applied to controlled nuclear fusion. Now China is researching controlled nuclear fusion technology, EAST (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak), which uses superconducting materials but needs to operate in a low-temperature environment. Among them, the 'super' in EAST means superconductor. If room-temperature superconductors can be realized, controlled nuclear fusion can take a big step forward. In addition, nuclear magnetic resonance, quantum computing, are areas that could benefit from room-temperature superconductors. Therefore, if this technology is realized, its prospects are definitively good.
Teams from China, the United States, and Russia have indeed conducted validation experiments. However, the exact conclusion is that the teams from the three countries only produced LK-99 crystals and verified that these crystals have anti-magnetic properties. Note, the key point, this time, is anti-magnetic properties, not room-temperature superconductivity. The former is a necessary but not sufficient condition for the latter. Between the two, there is still a huge gap.
On April 4, 2023, the Quantum Energy Research Centre (Q-Centre) applied for a trademark named "LK-99" with the Korean Intellectual Property Office. The application is currently awaiting examination.
Korea Intellectual Property Rights Information Service
archive-url
A groundbreaking discovery has been made in the field of superconductivity. Researchers have synthesized a material named LK-99, which is a modified-lead apatite crystal structure with the composition Pb$_{10-x}$Cu$_x$(PO$_4$)$6$O ($0.9<x<1.1$). This material showcases the Ohmic metal characteristic of Pb(6s1) above its superconducting critical temperature, $T_c$. Remarkably, it exhibits the levitation phenomenon, known as the Meissner effect of a superconductor, at room temperature and atmospheric pressure below its $T_c$. The LK-99 sample has a $T_c$ above 126.85°C (400 K). The potential for room-temperature superconductivity in this material is attributed to two primary factors. The first is the volume contraction resulting from an insulator-metal transition achieved by substituting Pb with Cu. The second is the on-site repulsive Coulomb interaction enhanced by the structural deformation in the one-dimensional chain (Cu$^{2+}$-O${1/2}$-Cu$^{2+}$ along the c-axis) structure due to superconducting condensation at $T_c$. The mechanism behind this room-temperature $T_c$ is further discussed using the 1-D BR-BCS theory.
For the first time in the world, a team of researchers led by Sukbae Lee, Ji-Hoon Kim, and Young-Wan Kwon succeeded in synthesizing a room-temperature superconductor working at ambient pressure with a modified lead-apatite (LK-99) structure. The superconductivity of LK-99 is confirmed through various tests, including its Critical temperature, Zero-resistivity, Critical current, Critical magnetic field, and the Meissner effect. The unique property of LK-99 originates from a minute structural distortion caused by a slight volume shrinkage, not influenced by external factors like temperature and pressure. This distortion is attributed to the substitution of certain ions in its structure, leading to the creation of superconducting quantum wells in the interface. The heat capacity results further validate the new model explaining the superconductivity of LK-99. The distinct structure of LK-99, which maintains this minute distorted structure, is the key reason for its ability to exhibit superconductivity at room temperatures and ambient pressure.
Ranga Dias, a controversial physicist, is on the verge of facing another paper retraction. A journal's investigation has revealed signs of data fabrication. This marks the second time Dias will have a paper revoked. On 15 August, a 2021 paper in Physical Review Letters, which discussed the electrical properties of manganese disulfide, was retracted. The retraction statement highlighted "serious doubts about the origins of three of the low-temperature resistance curves". All co-authors, except for Dias, agreed to the retraction. However, Dias remains firm on the data's authenticity and has expressed disagreement with the retraction decision.
A research team led by Hyun-Tak Kim claims to have developed a material, LK-99, that conducts electricity perfectly at room temperature and ambient pressure. This would be a significant breakthrough in the field of superconductors. However, the announcement has been met with skepticism from the scientific community. Superconductors can transmit electricity without resistance, but traditionally, they only function under extreme conditions like very low temperatures or high pressures. Kim's team created LK-99 by mixing compounds containing lead, oxygen, sulfur, and phosphorus, then heating them to produce a dark grey solid. Preliminary tests showed promising results, but many experts remain unconvinced. Two papers about LK-99 have been published on the preprint service arXiv, but Kim has expressed concerns about one of them, stating it was uploaded without his permission and contains "many defects". Kim encourages other researchers to replicate his team's work and is awaiting peer review.
A recent study from South Korea claimed the discovery of a room-temperature, ambient-pressure superconductor named LK-99, made from a combination of copper and lead. This material reportedly exhibits superconducting properties under everyday conditions. The study was accompanied by a video showcasing a piece of LK-99 "levitating" above a magnet, attributed to the "Meissner effect". However, experts have expressed skepticism. Dr. Sven Friedemann from the University of Bristol mentioned that the levitation could be due to other phenomena, like the diamagnetic properties of graphene. Other scientists also noted missing vital evidence in the studies. Given past controversies in this field, many are awaiting independent verifications before accepting these claims.
This week, the scientific community has been abuzz with claims of a new superconductor that operates above room temperatures and at ambient pressure. If substantiated, this discovery could revolutionize condensed matter physics, paving the way for innovations like levitating vehicles and highly efficient electrical grids. The claims, originating from Sukbae Lee and Ji-Hoon Kim of South Korea’s Quantum Energy Research Centre, have been met with skepticism. While some experts have criticized the lack of detail and potential inconsistencies in the presented data, others are actively attempting to replicate the experiment. The material in question, when doped with copper, is said to superconduct at temperatures as high as 400 K, surpassing the boiling point of water. Despite the excitement, many physicists remain cautious, awaiting further verification.
A spectacular superconductor claim is making news. Here’s why experts are doubtful
https://web.archive.org/web/20230729055410/https://www.science.org/content/article/spectacular-superconductor-claim-making-news-here-s-why-experts-are-doubtful
A team led by Lee Seok-Bae, the head of Quantum Energy Research Institute, and Oh Geun-Ho, an emeritus professor at Hanyang University, announced their discovery of a material that maintains superconductivity at approximately 30°C. This groundbreaking claim, if validated, could revolutionize the field of electrical engineering, as room-temperature superconductors have been a long-sought dream in the scientific community. Such materials, if commercialized, could lead to highly efficient power grids and compact quantum computers. However, the research has been met with skepticism from the global scientific community, especially since the findings were published on a preprint site 'Arxiv' rather than a peer-reviewed journal. Lee Seok-Bae mentioned that their initial research was submitted to the journal 'Nature' in 2020, but due to controversies surrounding Professor Dias, 'Nature' was hesitant to publish their work. Instead, they were advised to publish in a domestic journal first and then on the preprint site. Lee also added that they had submitted a paper to the international journal 'ALP Materials' on July 23rd. Furthermore, Lee revealed that they had been working on the realization of room-temperature superconductors since the mid-1990s, in collaboration with Professor Choi Dong-Sik of Korea University, spanning over two decades of research. The team has also filed a patent for their high-pressure room-temperature superconductor.
Researchers from South Korea have made a bold claim, stating they've discovered a new room-temperature ambient-pressure superconductor. This material, named LK-99, is said to conduct electricity perfectly under everyday conditions. Such a discovery, if validated, could revolutionize many technologies, from efficient power grids to levitating trains. However, the scientific community remains skeptical. Historically, the field of superconductivity has seen many claims that didn't withstand scrutiny. The South Korean team's findings, especially concerning LK-99's magnetic properties, have raised concerns among experts. Independent teams are now working to replicate the results.
Viral New Superconductivity Claims Leave Many Scientists Skeptical
Archived Version
A Korean research team's claim of developing a room-temperature superconductor has sparked significant controversy both domestically and internationally. The scientific community has long pursued the realization of room-temperature superconductors, and while the news from Korea has garnered attention, many in the academic circles remain skeptical. The research team has stated that one of the authors uploaded the paper to the preprint site 'arXiv' without the consent of the other authors. They emphasized that the paper is not finalized and was not intended for public release. The representative of the research also mentioned that Professor Kwon, who was previously the CTO of Quantum Energy Research Institute, resigned from his executive position four months ago and currently has no association with the company. Furthermore, it was reported that Professor Kwon is currently unreachable, even by his associates at Korea University.
A presentation took place at MML2023 where questions were posed to the presenters. However, the answers provided were not entirely satisfactory. There are rumors circulating that specialists in superconductivity from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are on their way to closely examine the experiments presented. The information was shared by Kenneth Bodin on Twitter, and the post included a photograph by Johaa Akerman.
Tom S. Seifert, known on Twitter as @TeraTom_S, shared his experience of attending an impressive talk by Young-Wan Kwon, one of the coauthors of the room-temperature superconductor #LK99. The talk took place at Korea University and was highlighted as one of the notable events of the MML2023 conference held in Seoul.
On July 28, 2023, at the 11th International Symposium on Metallic Multilayers (MML 2023) held at Korea University, Seoul, Young-Wan Kwon presented a groundbreaking discovery titled "The World First: Room-Temperature Ambient-Pressure Superconductor." This significant advancement in the field of superconductivity was showcased under the banner of The Korean Magnetics Society. The presentation highlighted the potential of room-temperature superconductors and their implications for various industries, including energy, transportation, and medical applications.
A groundbreaking patent has been filed by inventors Lee, Sukbae and Kim, Ji-Hoon, detailing a novel method for manufacturing ceramic composites that incorporate superconductors. This innovative approach aims to produce ceramics with significantly reduced resistance, paving the way for more efficient energy transmission and potentially revolutionizing various industries. The patent, titled "Method of manufacturing ceramic composite with low resistance including superconductors and the composite thereof", was granted on May 31, 2021. The detailed process involves specific techniques and materials to achieve the desired low-resistance properties in the ceramic composite.
LK-99 has emerged as the superconductor of the summer, capturing significant attention in the scientific community. This groundbreaking discovery was covered in an article by Kenneth Chang, published in The New York Times on August 3, 2023. The specifics of LK-99's properties and its potential applications remain to be explored further.
Nature publishes article stating that LK-99 is not a room-temperature superconductor. After extensive research and analysis by multiple institutions, it has been found that the electromagnetic characteristics of the sample originate from impurities, rather than the expected properties of a superconductor. The article summarizes the reversal of events regarding the LK-99 superconductor, shattering hopes for the material's potential as a room-temperature, ambient-pressure superconductor.